Field effect transistors for a flash memory comprising a self-aligned charge storage region

ABSTRACT

Storage transistors for flash memory areas in semiconductor devices may be provided on the basis of a self-aligned charge storage region. To this end, a floating spacer element may be provided in some illustrative embodiments, while, in other cases, the charge storage region may be efficiently embedded in the electrode material in a self-aligned manner during a replacement gate approach. Consequently, enhanced bit density may be achieved, since additional sophisticated lithography processes for patterning the charge storage region may no longer be required.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

Generally, the present disclosure relates to the field of integratedcircuits, and, more particularly, to field effect transistors used fornon-volatile information storage.

2. Description of the Related Art

Integrated circuits typically comprise a great number of circuitelements on a given chip area according to a specified circuit layout,wherein advanced devices may comprise millions of signal nodes that maybe formed by using field effect transistors, which may also be referredto herein as MOS transistors. Thus, field effect transistors mayrepresent a dominant component of modern semiconductor products, whereinadvances towards increased performance and low integration volume aremainly associated with a reduction of size of the basic transistorstructures. Generally, a plurality of process technologies are currentlypracticed, wherein, for complex circuitry, such as microprocessors,storage chips, ASICs (application specific ICs) and the like, MOStechnology is currently one of the most promising approaches due to thesuperior characteristics in view of operating speed and/or powerconsumption and/or cost efficiency. During the fabrication of complexintegrated circuits using MOS technology, millions of field effecttransistors, i.e., N-channel transistors and/or P-channel transistors,are formed on a substrate including a crystalline semiconductor layer. AMOS transistor, irrespective of whether an N-channel transistor or aP-channel transistor is considered, comprises so-called PN junctionsrepresented by an interface formed of highly doped drain and sourceregions and an inversely or weakly doped channel region disposed betweenthe drain region and the source region. The conductivity of the channelregion, i.e., the drive current capability of the conductive channel, iscontrolled by a gate electrode formed above the channel region andseparated therefrom by a thin insulating layer.

Due to the decreased dimensions of circuit elements, not only theperformance of the individual transistor elements may be increased, butalso their packing density may be improved, thereby providing thepotential for incorporating increased functionality into a given chiparea. For this reason, highly complex circuits have been developed,which may include different types of circuits, such as analog circuits,digital circuits and the like, thereby providing entire systems on asingle chip (SoC). Furthermore, in sophisticated micro-controllerdevices, an increasing amount of storage capacity may be provided onchip within the CPU core, thereby also significantly enhancing theoverall performance of modern computer devices. Similarly, in many typesof control circuits, different types of storage devices may beincorporated so as to provide an acceptable compromise between die areaconsumption and information storage density on the one side versusoperating speed on the other side. For instance, fast or temporarybuffer memories, so-called cache memories, may be provided in thevicinity of the CPU core, wherein respective cache memories may bedesigned so as to allow reduced access times compared to externalstorage devices.

On the other hand, increasingly, non-volatile memories may have to beincorporated in sophisticated semiconductor devices, wherein the flashmemory technique represents one promising technology, in which MOStechnology may be efficiently applied to forming storage cells. To thisend, basically, a field effect transistor is provided, in whichtransistor operation is controlled, on the other hand, by a gateelectrode, as discussed above, which additionally includes a floatinggate that is electrically insulated from the control gate electrode andfrom the channel region and drain region of the field effect transistor.The floating gate represents a dielectric charge storage region withinthe control gate electrode of the field effect transistor and may holdstationary charge carriers, which in turn influence the current flowbehavior of the field effect transistor. The stationary charge carriersin the floating gate may be injected upon establishing a specificoperation mode, which is also referred to as programming of the memorycell, in which per se negative effects, such as hot carrier injectionand the like, that is, any type of leakage current generating mechanism,may result in the incorporation of charge carriers in the charge storageregion. Consequently, in the normal operation mode, the injected chargecarriers in the charge storage region may thus significantly affect thecurrent flow through the channel region of the transistor, which may bedetected by appropriate control circuitry. On the other hand, uponerasing the memory cell, the charge carriers in the charge storageregion may be removed, for instance by establishing appropriate voltageconditions, thereby establishing a detectable different operationalbehavior of the field effect transistor during the normal operationmode, i.e., during the operation with the standard supply voltages.Although the concept of flash memory cells, i.e., of field effecttransistors comprising a floating gate, provides a non-volatile storagemechanism with moderately high information density and low access times,in turns out that further device scaling and compatibility to othersophisticated mask technologies may be difficult to be achieved on thebasis of conventional concepts for forming non-volatile storagetransistors, as will be described in more detail with reference to FIGS.1 a-1 e.

FIG. 1 a schematically illustrates a cross-sectional view of asemiconductor device 100, which may represent any semiconductor deviceincluding a flash memory area. For example, the semiconductor device 100represents a memory chip, a control circuit including a non-volatilememory and the like. For convenience, a single memory cell 150 isillustrated in FIG. 1 a, which is provided in the form of a field effecttransistor, which may also be referred to herein as a non-volatilestorage transistor. The device 100 comprises a substrate 101 and asemiconductor layer 102 formed thereabove, such as a silicon layer andthe like. It should be appreciated that the substrate 101 and thesemiconductor layer 102 may represent a silicon-on-insulator (SOI)configuration, if a buried insulating layer (not shown) is providedbetween the substrate 101 and the semiconductor layer 102. In othercases, the semiconductor layer 102 represents a portion of a crystallinematerial of the substrate 101, thereby providing a bulk configuration.The semiconductor layer 102 comprises a semiconductor region or activeregion 102A, in and above which the transistor 150 is formed. The activeregion 102A may be laterally delineated by any appropriate isolationstructure (not shown), such as a shallow trench isolation and the like.

The transistor 150 comprises a gate electrode structure 160 formed onthe semiconductor region 102A so as to control the current flow betweena source region 151 and a drain region 152, by controlling theconductivity state of a channel region 153, which is laterallypositioned between the source region 151 and the drain region 152. Thegate electrode structure 160 comprises a gate dielectric material 161,which is typically comprised of silicon dioxide or silicon oxynitride,with an appropriate thickness of, for instance, several nanometers insophisticated applications. Furthermore, a gate electrode 163 is formedon the gate dielectric material 161 and is typically comprised ofpolysilicon material 163A, possibly in combination with a contactmaterial 163B in the form of a metal silicide, such as nickel silicide.Furthermore, the gate electrode structure 160 comprises a charge storageregion 162, typically comprised of silicon nitride, which may also bereferred to as a floating gate, since the charge storage region 162 maybe embedded in a dielectric material so as to be electrically insulatedfrom the gate electrode 163 and from the channel region 153 and thedrain region 152 and may influence the current flow in the channelregion 153. For example, the gate dielectric material 161 in combinationwith an additional dielectric material 161A may provide dielectricencapsulation of the charge storage region 162. Moreover, as illustratedin FIG. 1 a, the charge storage region 162 is positioned so as tooverlap with a portion of the drain region 152 and a portion of thechannel region 153. That is, the charge storage region 162 is positionedat an area in which high energetic charge carriers may be present uponapplying appropriate voltages to the drain and source regions 152, 151and the gate electrode structure 160, which may thus enable theinjection or removal of charge carriers to and from the charge storageregion 162, as will be described later on in more detail.

Furthermore, the transistor 150 may comprise a sidewall spacer structure156 formed on sidewalls of the gate electrode 163, which may have anyappropriate configuration so as to appropriately define the lateral andvertical profile of the drain and source regions 152, 151. Moreover, asillustrated, contact areas 154, such as metal silicide regions, areprovided in the source and drain regions 151, 152.

In the manufacturing stage shown, the semiconductor device 100 furthercomprises a contact structure 120, which may comprise any appropriatedielectric material or materials, such as a layer 121, for instance inthe form of a silicon nitride material, followed by a second dielectricmaterial 122, such as a silicon dioxide material. Additionally, thecontact structure 120 comprises contact elements 123 so as to connect tothe source and drain regions 151, 152 and to the gate electrodestructure 160. It should be appreciated that the contact elements 123connecting to the source and drain regions 151, 152 and the contactelement 123 connecting to the gate electrode structure 160 are typicallyformed at different levels in a direction perpendicular to the drawingplane of FIG. 1 a, i.e., in the direction of the transistor width of thetransistor 150.

The semiconductor device 100 is typically formed on the basis of anyappropriate process strategy, during which other field effecttransistors may also be provided in the device 100. For example, theactive region 102A may be formed by providing corresponding isolationstructures and establishing a desired basic dopant profile in the region102A by applying well-established implantation processes and maskingtechniques. Next, the gate dielectric material 161 may be formed with anappropriate thickness on the transistor 150, while, in other deviceareas, a reduced thickness may be applied, depending on the overalldevice requirements. Next, a material for the charge storage region 162may be provided and may be subsequently patterned on the basis of anappropriate lithography process. Next, dielectric material 161A isformed and may be patterned, depending on the overall process strategy.Thereafter, the electrode material 163A, possibly in combination withfurther materials, such as hard mask materials, dielectric cap materialsand the like, are deposited and may be subsequently patterned on thebasis of sophisticated lithography and anisotropic etch techniques.Next, the drain and source regions 151, 152 may be formed, for instance,by a first implantation sequence so as to provide the desired overlap ofthe regions 151, 152 with the gate electrode structure 160, followed bythe deposition and patterning of any appropriate dielectric material forforming the sidewall spacer structure 156, which may then be used as animplantation mask for performing a subsequent implantation process forforming deeper areas of the drain and source regions 151, 152. Based onone or more anneal processes, the final dopant profile is thenestablished and the metal silicide regions 154 and 163B are formed bywell-established process techniques. Next, the contact structure 120 maybe formed by depositing the materials 121 and 122 and patterning thesame so as to form corresponding contact openings, which may besubsequently filled with any appropriate conductive material, such astungsten and the like, thereby providing the contact elements 123.

FIG. 1 b schematically illustrates the semiconductor device 100 in anoperating mode, in which the transistor 150 may be programmed. It shouldbe appreciated that the transistor 150 represents an N-channeltransistor in the example illustrated, i.e., the source and drainregions 151, 152 are heavily N-doped, while the channel region 153 isP-doped. When programming the transistor 150, i.e., when transferringcharge carriers 155A, that is, electrons, into the charge storage region162, a relatively high programming voltage is applied to the gateelectrode structure 160 and the drain 152. For example, 12 volts may beapplied and may represent a typical programming voltage. On the otherhand, the source region 151 is connected to the low supply voltage ofthe device 100, i.e., 0 volts. In this operational mode, a conductivechannel 155 may build up from the source region 151 via the channelregion 153 so as to connect to the drain region 152. That is, electronsstart flowing from the source region 151 to the drain region 152 and maythus be subjected to hot carrier injection or any other leakage currentmechanisms, in which electrons are gathering sufficient energy so as tomove through the dielectric material 161 and to be trapped in the region162.

FIG. 1 c schematically illustrates the device 100 during the normaloperating mode, i.e., in an operating mode in which the transistor 150may be read out in order to determine the state of the transistor 150and thus the information contained therein, which is associated with thestate of the transistor 150. Thus, during this operating mode, theregular supply voltage may be applied, such as 1 volt at the gateelectrode structure 160, while the source 151 is at the low supplyvoltage, i.e., 0 volts. In this case, the positive charges 165 mayresult in the establishment of a conductive channel 155, which, however,may be pinched off at the drain side 152 due to the presence of thestationary charges 155A, which have previously been programmed into thecharge storage region 162. Consequently, a current flow is notestablished between the source and drain regions 151, 152, and this highimpedance state of the transistor 150 may be detected by any appropriatecontrol circuitry (not shown). Hence, since the charges 155A maysubsequently not be affected by the typical operating voltages, exceptfor extremely small leakage currents and the like, the charges 155A maybe considered as stationary and may thus provide the non-volatilebehavior of the transistor 150, that is, even after switching off thesupply voltage, the charges 155A may remain trapped within the region162.

FIG. 1 d schematically illustrates the device 100 during an erase cycle,so as to re-write the transistor 150 with an inverse information bit. Tothis end, a moderately high voltage that is significantly above thetypical supply voltage, such as 12 volts, is supplied to drain region152, while the gate electrode structure 160 is connected to the lowsupply voltage, i.e., 0 volt. In this case, the charges 155A may beremoved from the region 162, for instance by quantum mechanical effects,which are typically known as Fowler-Nordheim tunneling. Hence, thecharges 155A may be removed via the channel region 153 and the drainregion 152.

FIG. 1 e schematically illustrates the device 100 after erasing thetransistor 150 during the normal operating mode. Next, upon applying thenormal operating voltage to the gate electrode structure 160, forinstance 1 volt, the conductive channel 155 may build up and may nowextend to the drain region 152, thereby providing a low impedance statefor the transistor 150, which may thus be detected by the correspondingcontrol circuitry.

The basic configuration of the transistor 150 may thus provide anon-volatile storage behavior, wherein a single field effect transistormay be sufficient to store at least 1 bit of information, therebycontributing to a high bit density. It turns out, however, that afurther scaling of the overall device dimension may result insignificant difficulties for the conventional concept, since, forinstance, the charge storage region 162 is patterned on the basis of alithography process, thereby requiring certain minimum dimensions thatare within the capability of the sophisticated lithography techniques.Consequently, the length of the gate electrode structure 160 may not bereduced, as is desirable in view of enhancing the overall informationdensity. Moreover, in sophisticated applications, increasingly, superiorgate electrode structures are used for standard field effect transistorsin order to reduce overall dimensions and increase performance. In thesestrategies, a high-k dielectric material, i.e., a material having adielectric constant of 10.0 or higher, is provided in the gateinsulation layer, in combination with a metal-containing electrodematerial, wherein various sophisticated process strategies have beendeveloped, which may not be compatible with the conventional concept ofproviding a non-volatile storage transistor, such as the transistor 150.For example, so-called replacement gate approaches have been developed,in which the high-k dielectric material in combination with appropriateelectrode metals are provided in a very late manufacturing stage, i.e.,after completing the basic transistor configuration, which may not becompatible with a conventional storage transistor configuration.Consequently, the efficiency and information density provided byconventional non-volatile storage transistors may not be enhanced in adesired manner, even if highly sophisticated manufacturing strategiesare applied for field effect transistors in other device areas.

The present disclosure is directed to various methods and devices thatmay avoid, or at least reduce, the effects of one or more of theproblems identified above.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The following presents a simplified summary of the invention in order toprovide a basic understanding of some aspects of the invention. Thissummary is not an exhaustive overview of the invention. It is notintended to identify key or critical elements of the invention or todelineate the scope of the invention. Its sole purpose is to presentsome concepts in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detaileddescription that is discussed later.

Generally, the present disclosure provides semiconductor devices,manufacturing techniques and methods of programming non-volatile storagetransistors, in which superior performance may be accomplished byapplying a self-aligned charge storage region in the storage transistor.To this end, in some illustrative aspects disclosed herein, the chargestorage region may be provided within a sidewall spacer structure thatmay per se be self-aligned during the fabrication process with respectto the gate electrode structure and at least the drain region. In otherillustrative aspects disclosed herein, the charge storage region may beembedded in the electrode material, however, without requiring anyadditional lithography process, which may be accomplished by applying areplacement gate approach, in which a placeholder material of the gateelectrode structure may be removed in a late manufacturing stage so asto provide a gate opening, which may be subsequently used for a processfor modifying the etch resistivity of a dielectric material, based onwhich the charge storage region may be provided within the gate opening.

The self-aligned nature of the charge storage region may further providesuperior compatibility to sophisticated manufacturing techniques andtransistor structures, for instance in terms of sophisticated gateelectrode structures, thereby enabling an efficient implementation ofnon-volatile storage transistors into complex semiconductor devices,wherein, additionally, the overall lateral dimensions of the storagetransistors may be reduced due to the self-aligned nature of thefabrication process. Moreover, upon using sophisticated materials, suchas high-k dielectric materials, in some illustrative aspects disclosedherein, superior conditions may be achieved during the programming anderasing of the non-volatile storage transistor, which may beaccomplished by taking advantage of superior material characteristics ofhigh-k dielectric materials, such as hafnium oxide and the like. To thisend, in some illustrative embodiments disclosed herein, the programmingand also the erasing of the storage transistor may be accomplished bycharge carrier transfer from the gate electrode from and to the chargestorage region, without requiring charge carrier transfer through a gateinsulation layer from the channel region into the charge storage region,as is the case in conventional storage transistors. Consequently,reduced programming and erasing voltages may be applied, while alsoendurance of the storage transistor may be increased, since thesensitive gate dielectric material may no longer act as an interface fortransferring charges on the basis of hot carrier injection.

One illustrative non-volatile storage transistor disclosed hereincomprises a gate electrode formed above a semiconductor region andseparated therefrom by a gate insulation layer. The non-volatile storagetransistor further comprises a source region formed in the semiconductorregion that connects to a channel region at a source site of the storagetransistor. Moreover, the transistor comprises a drain region formed inthe semiconductor region so as to connect to the channel region at adrain site of the storage transistor. Additionally, a floating sidewallspacer is formed at a sidewall of the gate electrode, at least at thedrain site of the transistor, wherein the floating sidewall spacer isformed above a portion of the channel region and above a portion of thedrain region. Furthermore, a first dielectric layer is formed so as toseparate the floating sidewall spacer from the gate electrode and asecond dielectric layer is formed so as to separate the floatingsidewall spacer from the channel region and the drain region.

One illustrative method disclosed herein relates to storing informationin a non-volatile storage transistor. The method comprises providing acharge storage region adjacent and electrically insulated from a drainregion and a gate electrode of the storage transistor, wherein thecharge storage region is positioned so as to influence charge carrierflow in a channel region of the storage transistor. The methodadditionally comprises applying a programming voltage between the gateelectrode structure and the drain region of the storage transistor so asto initiate charge carrier transfer from the gate electrode to thecharge storage region.

One illustrative method disclosed herein relates to forming anon-volatile storage transistor. The method comprises forming a gateelectrode structure on a semiconductor region and forming a dielectriccharge storage region in a self-aligned manner adjacent to andelectrically insulated from a channel region and a drain region of thestorage transistor.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The disclosure may be understood by reference to the followingdescription taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, inwhich like reference numerals identify like elements, and in which:

FIG. 1 a schematically illustrates a cross-sectional view of aconventional non-volatile storage transistor for a flash memory cellincluding a floating gate or charge storage region;

FIGS. 1 b-1 e schematically illustrate cross-sectional views of thetransistor during various operating modes in programming and erasing thestorage transistor, according to conventional strategies;

FIGS. 2 a-2 i schematically illustrate cross-sectional views of asemiconductor device during various manufacturing stages in forming anon-volatile storage transistor including a floating sidewall spacer asa self-aligned charge storage region on the basis of a replacement gateapproach, according to illustrative embodiments;

FIG. 2 j schematically illustrates a graph representing the leakagecurrent behavior of a conventional dielectric material and a high-kdielectric material;

FIGS. 2 k-2 n schematically illustrate cross-sectional views of thestorage transistor during various operating modes for programming anderasing an N-channel transistor on the basis of reduced voltages,according to illustrative embodiments;

FIGS. 2 o-2 r schematically illustrate cross-sectional views of thesemiconductor device, when a P-channel transistor is programmed anderased on the basis of reduced voltages, according to furtherillustrative embodiments;

FIGS. 2 s-2 u schematically illustrate cross-sectional views of asemiconductor device during various manufacturing stages in providing afloating spacer element on the basis of a manufacturing regime withoutrequiring the replacement of a gate electrode material, according tostill further illustrative embodiments;

FIGS. 3 a-3 f schematically illustrate cross-sectional views of asemiconductor device during various manufacturing stages, in which acharge storage material may be patterned in a self-aligned manner, i.e.,without requiring a lithography process, during a replacement gateapproach within a gate opening, according to illustrative embodiments;

FIGS. 3 g-3 l schematically illustrate cross-sectional views of thesemiconductor device according to illustrative embodiments in which thecharge storage material, possibly in combination with an etch maskmaterial, may be provided in a late manufacturing stage and may bepatterned in a self-aligned manner; and

FIGS. 3 m-3 n schematically illustrate cross-sectional views of thesemiconductor device comprising the self-aligned charge storage regionwithin the gate electrode, wherein a high-k dielectric material mayresult in a superior programming and erasing behavior, according tostill further illustrative embodiments.

While the subject matter disclosed herein is susceptible to variousmodifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof havebeen shown by way of example in the drawings and are herein described indetail. It should be understood, however, that the description herein ofspecific embodiments is not intended to limit the invention to theparticular forms disclosed, but on the contrary, the intention is tocover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling withinthe spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Various illustrative embodiments of the invention are described below.In the interest of clarity, not all features of an actual implementationare described in this specification. It will of course be appreciatedthat in the development of any such actual embodiment, numerousimplementation-specific decisions must be made to achieve thedevelopers' specific goals, such as compliance with system-related andbusiness-related constraints, which will vary from one implementation toanother. Moreover, it will be appreciated that such a development effortmight be complex and time-consuming, but would nevertheless be a routineundertaking for those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit ofthis disclosure.

The present subject matter will now be described with reference to theattached figures. Various structures, systems and devices areschematically depicted in the drawings for purposes of explanation onlyand so as to not obscure the present disclosure with details that arewell known to those skilled in the art. Nevertheless, the attacheddrawings are included to describe and explain illustrative examples ofthe present disclosure. The words and phrases used herein should beunderstood and interpreted to have a meaning consistent with theunderstanding of those words and phrases by those skilled in therelevant art. No special definition of a term or phrase, i.e., adefinition that is different from the ordinary and customary meaning asunderstood by those skilled in the art, is intended to be implied byconsistent usage of the term or phrase herein. To the extent that a termor phrase is intended to have a special meaning, i.e., a meaning otherthan that understood by skilled artisans, such a special definition willbe expressly set forth in the specification in a definitional mannerthat directly and unequivocally provides the special definition for theterm or phrase.

Generally, the present disclosure provides non-volatile storagetransistors, which may be used in flash memory areas of any type ofsemiconductor device, wherein superior performance and/or scalabilitymay be accomplished by generally providing the charge storage region ofthe storage transistor in a self-aligned manner, thereby eliminating therequirement for a sophisticated lithography process, or appropriatelypositioning the charge storage region adjacent to the channel region andthe drain region of the transistor. To this end, in some illustrativeembodiments, the sidewall spacer structure, or at least a portionthereof, may be advantageously used as the charge storage region, whichmay thus be self-aligned without requiring any specific lithographyprocesses. The sidewall spacer, which may also be referred to herein asa floating spacer, may be appropriately positioned at the drain site ofthe transistor so as to be positioned above a portion of the channelregion and above a portion of the drain region by providing anasymmetric drain source configuration, which may be accomplished byapplying a drain source extension implantation using a tilt angle.Moreover, the concept of a floating spacer may be applied tosophisticated gate electrode structures, for instance comprising ahigh-k dielectric material in combination with a metal-containingelectrode material, wherein, in some illustrative embodiments, thedifferent leakage characteristics of conventional dielectrics and high-kdielectric materials may be taken advantage of in order to enable theprogramming and erasing of the storage transistor with significantlyreduced voltages compared to conventional concepts. To this end,sophisticated replacement gate approaches may be applied, in which thehigh-k dielectric material may electrically insulate the floating spacerelement from the electrode metal of the gate electrode structure, whichmay result in increased leakage currents above a certain gate voltagecompared to conventional dielectrics, which may be formed below thefloating spacer so as to isolate the spacer from the drain region andthe channel region. In this case, upon applying an appropriate voltage,which may, however, be significantly less compared to conventionalprogramming and erasing voltages, charge transfer may take place fromthe gate electrode to the floating spacer, thereby not requiring acharge carrier transfer through the gate dielectric layer.

In other illustrative embodiments, the concept of a floating spacer maybe applied to any gate electrode structure, such as a high-k metal gateelectrode structure or a conventional gate electrode structure, therebyproviding a high degree of design flexibility.

In other illustrative embodiments disclosed herein, the charge storageregion may be embedded in the electrode material of the gate electrodestructure in a self-aligned manner, which may be accomplished byremoving a placeholder material of the gate electrode structure in anadvanced manufacturing stage and using the resulting gate opening as anefficient mask, for instance for a tilted implantation process, so as toprovide a locally varying etch rate of a dielectric material within thegate opening. Thereafter, on the basis of dielectric material having thelocally varying etch rate, the material of the charge storage region maybe appropriately patterned and subsequently a dielectric material, suchas high-k dielectric material, and an electrode metal may be filled intothe gate opening. In some illustrative embodiments, also in this case,the advantageous behavior of the high-k dielectric material may be takenadvantage of in order to induce charge carrier transition uponprogramming and erasing the storage transistor within the gate electrodestructure rather than between the channel region and the embedded chargestorage region.

As a consequence, non-volatile storage transistors of any conductivitytype, such as N-channel transistors and P-channel transistors, may beprovided with reduced overall dimensions without being restricted bylithography, wherein, if desired, compatibility with sophisticated gateelectrode structures formed on the basis of a high-k dielectric materialand a metal-containing electrode material may be achieved. Consequently,high density non-volatile memory areas may be provided or may beincorporated into any type of complex semiconductor device.

With reference to FIGS. 2 a-2 u and 3 a-3 h, further illustrativeembodiments will now be described in more detail, wherein reference mayalso be made to FIGS. 1 a-1 e, if appropriate.

FIG. 2 a schematically illustrates a cross-sectional view of asemiconductor device 200 comprising a substrate 201 and a semiconductorlayer 202. The substrate 201 and the semiconductor layer 202 mayrepresent any appropriate device architecture, such as SOI, bulk and thelike. Furthermore, any appropriate material may be used in thesemiconductor layer 202 so as to form appropriate circuit elements, suchas transistors and the like, therein and thereabove. Moreover, an activeregion or semiconductor region 202A may be provided in the layer 202,for instance on the basis of any isolation structure (not shown). Anactive region is to be understood herein as a semiconductor region inwhich one or more PN junctions are to be formed for one or moretransistor elements. Consequently, the active region 202A may have abasic dopant concentration and profile as required for forming atransistor of a desired conductivity type. It should be appreciated,however, that corresponding well dopants may also be incorporated in alater manufacturing stage, if considered appropriate in view of theoverall process strategy. Furthermore, a gate electrode structure 260may be formed on the active region 202A and may comprise any appropriatematerial 266, which may also represent a placeholder material for astorage transistor still to be formed, while, in other cases, thematerial 266 may act as the actual electrode material, if required. Forexample, the material 266 may comprise silicon, silicon/germanium andthe like. Additionally, a dielectric cap material 267, such as siliconnitride, silicon dioxide and the like, may be provided in the gateelectrode structure 260. Additionally, the gate electrode structure 260may comprise a dielectric material 261B, which may still be present in anon-patterned manner, if required. The dielectric material 261B mayrepresent any appropriate dielectric material, such as silicon dioxide,silicon oxynitride and the like, and may have any appropriate thicknessso as to appropriately isolate a charge storage region still to beformed above the active region 202A. For example, a thickness of thelayer 261B may be two to several nanometers, for instance, whencomprised of silicon dioxide.

The semiconductor device 200 as illustrated in FIG. 2 a may be formed onthe basis of any appropriate process strategy, i.e., providing theactive region 202A and depositing the materials for the gate electrodestructure 260, which may be subsequently patterned, at least withrespect to the layers 267 and 266, by using any appropriate processtechnique, as is also previously discussed with reference to the device100. It should be appreciated, however, that contrary to conventionalstrategies, a length 260L of the gate electrode structure 260 may beselected in accordance with superior information density and the like,since any restriction with respect to providing a charge storage regionmay be avoided according to the principles disclosed herein. Thus, thelength 260L may be in the range of 40 nm and less in sophisticatedapplications.

FIG. 2 b schematically illustrates the semiconductor device 200 duringan implantation process 203, in which drain and source dopant speciesmay be incorporated into the active region 202A in order to form a firstportion of source and drain regions, also referred to as source anddrain extension regions 251E, 252E, respectively. During theimplantation process 203, an appropriate tilt angle, i.e., as defined bythe substantially parallel incoming ion beam and a surface normal 202S,may be selected such that the source extension region 251E may receive acertain degree of overlap with the gate electrode structure 260, whilethe drain extension region 252E may be laterally offset from the gateelectrode structure 260. Hence, the extension regions 251E, 252E may beasymmetrically positioned with respect to the gate electrode structure260. Appropriate tilt angles and implantation parameters may be readilydetermined on the basis of the required final source and drain dopantprofiles and the desired degree of asymmetry by using computersimulation, experiments and the like. It should be appreciated that thegate electrode structure 260 may comprise any appropriate offset spacer(not shown), if required in this manufacturing stage.

FIG. 2 c schematically illustrates the device 200 in a further advancedmanufacturing stage, in which a dielectric charge storage material 262may be formed above the active region 202A and the gate electrodestructure 260. The material 262 may be provided in the form of anyappropriate dielectric material, such as silicon nitride and the like,which may be accomplished on the basis of well-establishedplasma-enhanced or thermally activated chemical vapor deposition (CVD)process techniques. Thereafter, the layer 262 may be etched on the basisof any appropriate etch recipe, wherein a plurality of selectiveplasma-assisted etch techniques for etching silicon nitride selectivelywith respect to silicon dioxide are well established and may be used forpatterning the layer 262.

FIG. 2 d schematically illustrates the semiconductor device 200 in afurther advanced manufacturing stage. As illustrated, a spacer 262S maybe formed on sidewalls of the gate electrode 266, wherein a size thereofmay be substantially determined by the thickness of the initial layer262 (FIG. 2 c) and the etch parameters used for patterning this layer.For example, in some illustrative embodiments, the spacer 262S, whichmay act a self-aligned charge storage region, as will be explained lateron in more detail, may have a width that may be appropriate for formingdrain and source regions 252, 251 with an appropriate lateral andvertical profile, while, in other cases, an additional sidewall spacerstructure 255 may be provided, for instance in the form of a siliconnitride material, possibly in combination with a silicon dioxide liner,in order to provide an increased lateral offset during a correspondingimplantation sequence for forming the drain and source regions 252, 251so as to appropriately connect to the corresponding extension regions252E, 251E. The final dopant profile may be adjusted on the basis of anyappropriate anneal technique, thereby also activating the incorporateddopant species and re-crystallizing, at least partially, anyimplantation-induced damage. Consequently, the source extension region251E may have a desired overlap with the gate electrode 266, while thedrain extension region 252E may overlap with the spacer 262S, which isthus positioned above a portion of the channel region 253 and a portionof the drain extension region 252E. Consequently, the spacer 262S may bepositioned so as to influence the current flow through the channelregion 253 upon incorporating charge carriers therein, as will bedescribed later on in more detail. On the other hand, the spacer 262S isseparated from the channel region 253 and the drain extension region252E by the dielectric material 261B.

FIG. 2 e schematically illustrates the device 200 in a further advancedmanufacturing stage, in which a portion of a contact structure 220 maybe provided above the active region 202A and the gate electrodestructure 260. For example, the structure 220 may comprise anyappropriate dielectric material or materials, such as a material 221,for instance provided in the form of silicon nitride and the like,possibly in a highly stressed state, followed by a further dielectricmaterial 222, such as a silicon dioxide material and the like. Moreover,if required, contact areas in the form of metal silicide regions 254 maybe provided in the drain and source regions 252, 251, while the gateelectrode 266 may comprise still at least a portion of the dielectriccap material 267.

The metal silicide regions 254 and the dielectric materials 221, 222 maybe provided on the basis of any appropriate process strategy. It shouldbe appreciated that additional materials, such as etch stop materialsand the like, may be provided together with the materials 221 and 222,if required, for instance for providing differently stressed dielectricmaterials in different device areas and the like.

FIG. 2 f schematically illustrates the device 200 in a further advancedmanufacturing stage, in which the materials 221 and 222 are planarizedso as to expose a top surface of the placeholder material 266 (FIG. 2e), which may then be removed on the basis of any appropriate selectiveetch technique. For example, a plurality of wet chemical andplasma-assisted etch recipes are available for removing a plurality ofmaterials, such as silicon, with respect to dielectric materials, suchas silicon nitride, silicon dioxide and the like. Consequently, duringthe corresponding etch process, a gate opening 260O may be formed in thegate electrode structure 260, wherein the material 261B may act as anefficient etch stop material. If desired, the initial thickness 261T ofthe material 261B, which may be appropriately selected so as toefficiently separate the spacer 262S from the drain region 252 and thechannel region 253, may be reduced within the opening 260O, for instanceby using any well-controllable etch techniques, such as hydrofluoricacid and the like. In other cases, the exposed portion of the material261B may be substantially completely removed, for instance byplasma-assisted etch processes in combination with wet chemical etchprocesses and the like, if considered appropriate for the furtherprocessing of the device 200 and the resulting device characteristics.

FIG. 2 g schematically illustrates the semiconductor device 200 in afurther advanced manufacturing stage. As illustrated, a gate dielectricmaterial 261 may be formed within the opening 260O, thereby separatingan electrode material 263 from the channel region 253. Furthermore, aspreviously discussed, a portion of the material 261B or all of thematerial 261B may also be present and may act in combination with thematerial 261 as a gate insulation layer of the gate electrode structure260. In other cases, a corresponding conventional dielectric materialmay be newly formed, for instance by oxidation and the like, ifconsidered appropriate. On the other hand, the material 261 is formed soas to be in contact with the sidewall spacers 262S, thereby electricallyinsulating the spacers 262S from the electrode material 263. In someillustrative embodiments, the material 261 may comprise a high-kdielectric material, such as a hafnium oxide based material, a zirconiumoxide based material and the like, which may typically have a higherdielectric constant compared to conventional dielectric materials, suchas silicon dioxide, silicon nitride and the like. The electrode material263 may be comprised of any material or material layers in order toobtain the desired high conductivity and the threshold voltage, forinstance by providing an appropriate work function adjusting material inthe layer 263, as may be appropriate for the gate electrode structure260. For instance, titanium nitride, tantalum nitride, aluminum,lanthanum and the like may represent appropriate candidates formaterials to be used in the electrode layer 263. Typically, thedielectric material 261 may be deposited on the basis of a conformaldeposition technique, such as atomic layer deposition (ALD), whichrepresents a self-limiting CVD-like deposition technique, or any otherprocess technique. Similarly, the material 263 may be provided byCVD-like deposition techniques, sputter deposition, electrochemicaldeposition or any combination thereof.

FIG. 2 h schematically illustrates the semiconductor device 200 in afurther advanced manufacturing stage, i.e., after the removal of anyexcess material, thereby providing the gate electrode structure 260 soas to comprise a gate electrode 263, i.e., the remaining material of thelayer 263 of FIG. 2 g, and the dielectric material 261, which, incombination with the material 261B, may represent the gate dielectricmaterial of the gate electrode structure 260. Moreover, the layer 261may separate the gate electrode 263 from the spacer 262S, which in turnis separated by the material 261B from the channel region 253 and thedrain region 252. It should be appreciated that any appropriate processstrategy, such as chemical mechanical polishing CMP) and the like, maybe applied in order to obtain the device 200 as shown in FIG. 2 h.

FIG. 2 i schematically illustrates the semiconductor device 200 in astage in which the contact structure 220 may be completed and maycomprise contact elements 223 so as to connect to the transistor 250.For example, the contact structure 220 may comprise an additionaldielectric material 224, possibly in combination with an etch stopmaterial 225 which may be provided in the form of any appropriatedielectric materials. Thus, contact elements 223 may connect to thedrain and source regions 252, 251 and also to the gate electrodestructure 260, i.e., to the gate electrode 263. Any appropriate processstrategy may be applied for forming the contact structure 220 as shownin FIG. 2 i, wherein sophisticated lithography strategies may be applieddue to the reduced lateral dimension of the transistor 250, which is nolonger restricted by the incorporation of an embedded charge storageregion to be formed on the basis of lithography processes.

Consequently, the spacer 262S at the drain site, i.e., formed above thechannel region 253 and the drain region 252, may act as a self-alignedcharge storage region, which may exchange charge carriers with the gateelectrode 263 through the dielectric material 261, while an injection ofhot charge carriers from the channel region 253 into the spacer 262S forprogramming and erasing the transistor 250 may be substantially avoided,as will be discussed later on.

FIG. 2 j illustrates the leakage behavior of a high-k dielectricmaterial, represented by curve B, versus the leakage behavior of aconventional dielectric material, such as silicon dioxide, representedby curve A, in a very schematic manner. As illustrated, the horizontalaxis represents the gate voltage, i.e., a voltage supplied to the gateelectrode and the drain or source of a corresponding transistor, whilethe vertical axis may represent the resulting leakage current inarbitrary units. As shown, for moderately low gate voltages, which mayrepresent the operating voltages of sophisticated transistors in anormal operating mode, the leakage current of a conventional gatedielectric material, i.e., curve A, may be significantly higher comparedto a high-k dielectric material, i.e., curve B, such as hafnium oxide.It should be appreciated that the corresponding thickness values ofthese materials may be selected so as to obtain the same oxideequivalent thickness. Thus, as expected, for normal operating voltages,the high-k dielectric material may exhibit a superior performance. Onthe other hand, at higher voltages, for instance, in the example shown,above approximately 1.4 volts, the leakage current of the high-kdielectric material may increase and may be higher compared to theconventional dielectric material. Consequently, this effect may, in someillustrative embodiments, be advantageously exploited so as to initiateleakage currents through a high-k dielectric material at a reducedvoltage compared to a conventional dielectric material, thereby enablingapplying reduced programming voltages and erasing voltages, as will bedescribed later on.

FIG. 2 k schematically illustrates a procedure for programming thetransistor 250, when representing an N-channel transistor, on the basisof a superior programming strategy compared to conventional procedures,as, for instance, described with reference to FIG. 1 b. As illustrated,a moderately high voltage may be applied to the drain 252, which,however, may be significantly lower compared to conventional programmingvoltages. For example, a voltage above 1 volt and less thanapproximately 5 volts may be applied, while the source 251 and the gateelectrode 263 are held at the lower supply voltage, i.e., 0 volts. Dueto the increased programming voltage, charge carriers 263C may betransferred from the gate electrode 263 into the floating spacer 262Sand may thus be accumulated therein, thereby providing the stationarycharge in the spacer 262S.

FIG. 2 l schematically illustrates the semiconductor device 200 in anormal operating mode, when transistor 250 is in a programmed state,i.e., when charge carriers 263C are positioned within the floatingspacer 262S. In this case, the normal operating voltage, for instance +1volt, is applied to the gate electrode 263, while the source 251 is heldat the lower supply voltage. In this case, a conductive channel 255 maybuild up starting from the source region 251 due to the positivelypre-charged gate electrode 263, while, however, the negative charges263C in the spacer 262S may result in an efficient interruption or pinchoff of the channel 255, thereby resulting in a high impedance state ofthe transistor 250.

FIG. 2 m schematically illustrates the device 200 during an erase mode,in which a moderately high erase voltage, for instance a voltage above 1volt, is applied to the gate electrode 263, while the drain and sourceregions 252, 251 are held at the lower supply voltage. Consequently, thecharge carriers 263C may channel through the gate dielectric material261 into the electrode 263.

FIG. 2 n schematically illustrates the semiconductor device 200 in thenormal operating mode, when the transistor 250 is in the erased ornon-programmed state, i.e., charge carriers have been removed from thefloating spacer 262S. In this case, the conductive channel 255 may buildup from the source region 251 via the channel region 253 and may connectto the drain region 252 due to the lack of the negative excess charge inthe spacer 262S.

Consequently, based on the above programming and erasing procedure, thetransistor 250 may be bought into a low impedance state and highimpedance state, as required for a memory cell, which may beaccomplished on the basis of moderately low programming and erasingvoltages compared to conventional strategies.

FIG. 2 o schematically illustrates the device 200 during a programmingphase, when the transistor 250 represents a P-channel transistor. Inthis case, a moderately high programming voltage of, for instance, aboveone volt, depending on the characteristics of the dielectric material inthe gate electrode structure 260, may be applied to the drain region252, while the gate electrode 263 is kept at the low supply voltage.Consequently, as explained above, the excess charge carriers 263C may betransferred into the floating spacer 262S.

FIG. 2 p schematically illustrates the device 200 during the normaloperating mode, i.e., the supply voltage of, for instance, +1 volt isapplied to the source region 251, while the gate electrode 263 isconnected to the low supply voltage. Consequently, a conductive channel255 may build up and may, due to the presence of the negative excesscharge 263C within the floating spacer 262S, connect to the drain region252, thereby providing a low impedance state.

FIG. 2 q schematically illustrates the device 200, when erasing thetransistor 250, whereby the erasing voltage of, for instance, more thanone volt is applied to the gate electrode 263, while the drain region252 is connected to the low supply voltage. Consequently, at least themost part of the excess charge 263C may be transferred into the gateelectrode 263.

In FIG. 2 r, the normal operating mode of the device 200 is illustrated,after erasing the transistor 250. In this case, the conductive channel255 may not connect to the drain region 252 due to the lack ofsufficient excess charge in the floating spacer 262S, thereby resultingin a high impedance state.

Consequently, P-channel transistors and N-channel transistors may beefficiently used as non-volatile storage transistors, wherein reduceddimensions may be implemented due to the self-aligned nature of themanufacturing process. Furthermore, contrary to conventionalnon-volatile storage transistors, a charge transfer to and from thecharge storage region may be established by means of the gate electroderather than requiring the transition of charge carriers through theactual gate dielectric layer, thereby providing superior endurance,i.e., an increased number of write and erase cycles of the storagetransistor. Moreover, the process strategy may be compatible withsophisticated replacement gate approaches in which high performance gateelectrode structures may be provided in other transistor elements.

With reference to FIGS. 2 s-2 u, further illustrative embodiments willbe described, in which the concept of a floating spacer may be appliedto any appropriate gate electrode structure.

FIG. 2 s schematically illustrates the semiconductor device 200 in amanufacturing stage in which the drain and source extension regions252E, 251E are formed in the active region 202A and have an asymmetricconfiguration with respect to the gate electrode structure 260, whichmay comprise a gate dielectric material 261B, such as a materialcomprising a high-k dielectric material in combination with aconventional dielectric material, or the material 261B may be providedin the form of a conventional dielectric material, such as siliconoxynitride and the like. Moreover, the gate electrode structure 260 maycomprise an electrode material 263A, such as a polysilicon material,possibly in combination with a metal-containing electrode material,thereby providing a high-k metal gate electrode structure if thematerial 261B comprises a high-k dielectric material. In other cases,the electrode material 263A may be comprised of a semiconductormaterial, such as polysilicon and the like. Furthermore, if required, acap material 267 may still be provided above the material 263A, while,in other cases, the material 267 may have been removed in an earliermanufacturing phase. Furthermore, the floating sidewall spacer 262S isformed on the sidewalls of the gate electrode structure 260 incombination with an appropriate dielectric material 261B, such as asilicon dioxide material, having an appropriate thickness so as toappropriately act as a charge transfer layer, as is also previouslydiscussed when referring to the conventional semiconductor device 100.

It should be appreciated that the device 200 as illustrated in FIG. 2 smay be formed on the basis of similar process techniques describedabove, for instance for providing the extension regions 251E, 252E,while the gate electrode structure 260 may be formed in accordance withany appropriate process strategy in order to obtain the desiredelectrical performance and gate length. For example, a high-k dielectricmaterial in combination with a metal-containing electrode material maybe provided in an early manufacturing stage in combination with asilicon material, while, in other cases, a conventional electrodestructure may be provided, however, without being restricted in thelateral dimensions by sophisticated lithography process due to theself-aligned nature of the spacer 262S.

FIG. 2 t schematically illustrates the device 200 in a further advancedmanufacturing stage. As illustrated, the transistor 250 may comprise thedrain and source regions 252, 251 including metal silicide regions 254.Furthermore, in some illustrative embodiments, a metal silicide 263B mayalso be formed in the electrode material 263A, which may be accomplishedby removing the cap layer 267 prior to performing a correspondingsilicidation process. Thus, as previously explained, the floating spacer262S may be positioned above a portion of the channel region 253 and thedrain region 252 and may be separated from the gate electrode 263A andthe regions 253, 252 by the dielectric material 261B. It should beappreciated that a height of the spacer 262S may be appropriatelyreduced, for instance upon forming the spacer, so as to avoid anycontact with the metal silicide region 263B.

FIG. 2 u schematically illustrates the device 200 in a further advancedmanufacturing stage. As shown, the contact structure 220 may be providedand may have a similar configuration as is, for instance, illustrated inFIG. 1 a when referring to the conventional storage transistor.Furthermore, the transistor 250 may be illustrated in a stage in whichexcess charge may be accumulated in the floating spacer 262S during aprogramming procedure, which may be performed on the basis of aconventional strategy, for instance by applying a high voltage, such as12 volts, to the gate electrode 263A, 263B and to the drain region 252,when the transistor 250 represents an N-channel transistor.Consequently, upon building up the conductive channel 255 in the channelregion 253, hot charge carriers may be transferred into the spacer 262S,as is also previously explained with reference to the device 100.Similarly, upon erasing the transistor 250, the excess charge may bedrained off via the drain region 252, as previously discussed.Consequently, a conventional programming and erasing strategy may beapplied, while nevertheless a high degree of flexibility in designingthe gate electrode structure 260 may be achieved, for instance in termsof material composition and in particular in terms of lateral dimensionsdue to the self-aligned nature of the floating spacer 262S.

With reference to FIGS. 3 a-3 n, further illustrative embodiments willnow be described, in which the charge storage region may be embedded inthe gate electrode material, however, contrary to conventionalstrategies, in a self-aligned manner, i.e., without requiring anadditional lithography process for patterning the charge storage regionwithin the gate electrode structure.

FIG. 3 a schematically illustrates a cross-sectional view of asemiconductor device 300 comprising a substrate 301 and a semiconductorlayer 302, having formed therein an active region 302A, in and abovewhich may be provided a storage transistor 350. The transistor 350 maycomprise a gate electrode structure 360 including a placeholder material366, such as polysilicon and the like. Moreover, a dielectric material361A may be provided, for instance in the form of silicon dioxide,silicon oxynitride and the like. Additionally, a charge storage material362, such as silicon nitride and the like, may be formed on thedielectric material 361A and may extend, contrary to conventionalapproaches, along the entire length of the gate electrode structure 360.The transistor 350 may further comprise drain and source regions 352,351, which may have a symmetric configuration with respect to the gateelectrode structure 360, i.e., the regions 352, 351 may overlap with thegate electrode 366, as required. Furthermore, metal silicide regions 354may be provided in the drain and source regions 352, 351 and a contactstructure 320, or at least a portion thereof, may be provided, forinstance comprising materials 321, 322 in the form of silicon nitride,silicon dioxide and the like.

The semiconductor device 300 as illustrated in FIG. 3 a may be formed onthe basis of the following processes. The active region 302A may beprovided in accordance with any appropriate process strategy, as is, forinstance, previously discussed, and thereafter appropriate materials forthe layers 361A, 362 and 366, possibly in combination with additionalmaterials, such as a dielectric cap material, hard mask materials andthe like, may be provided, and may finally be patterned in accordancewith the desired critical dimensions. Thus, the charge storage material362 may be patterned together with a gate layer stack. Thereafter, thedrain and source regions 352, 351 may be provided in accordance withwell-established implantation techniques, using, for instance, asidewall spacer structure 355 as an implantation mask. After any annealprocesses, the metal silicide regions 354 may be formed and thematerials 321, 322 may be deposited and planarized, thereby exposing thematerial 366. Thereafter, the material 366 may be removed by anyappropriate selective etch recipe, such as wet chemical etch recipes inthe form of TMAH (tetra methyl ammonium hydroxide), in order to removesilicon material selectively with respect to dielectric materials. Inother cases, plasma-assisted recipes, possibly in combination with wetchemical recipes, may be applied. During this etch process, the chargestorage material 362 may act as an efficient etch stop material.

FIG. 3 b schematically illustrates the semiconductor device 300 in anadvanced manufacturing stage, in which a gate opening 360O may beprovided in the gate electrode structure 360 upon removing theplaceholder material 366 (FIG. 3 a). Furthermore, the gate opening 360Omay be used as an efficient implantation mask during an implantationprocess 306, in which an appropriate implantation species may beincorporated in the layer 362 in a locally selective manner within thegate opening 360O, thereby modifying the etch behavior of the material362.

It is well known that a plurality of etch chemistries may respond highlysensitively to the incorporation of any material species into a basematerial, which may result in an increased or reduced etch rate. Forexample, hydrofluoric acid, which may be used for etching silicondioxide, may also have a certain etch rate in a silicon nitridematerial, when incorporating therein an increased amount of hydrogen.Similarly, the etch rate of silicon dioxide may be modified uponintroducing additional atomic species. Consequently, by performing theimplantation process 306 so as to result in a locally varyingincorporation of the implant species, the desired locally varying etchmodification may be achieved. For example, an appropriate tilt anglebeta (β), i.e., the angle between incoming ion beam and a surface normal302S, may be selected such that a portion 362R at the source site of thetransistor 350 may preferably be exposed to the ion bombardment, while aportion 362S may be efficiently shadowed. For example, by incorporatinga hydrogen species, the etch rate of the material 362, if comprised ofsilicon nitride, may be strongly increased in the portion 362R. In othercases, any other appropriate material systems may be identified, inwhich the etch rate may be efficiently modified on the basis of an ionbombardment. For example, if a species may be identified which mayresult in a significant reduction of the etch rate, the implant anglebeta may be selected so as to expose the portion 362S, while shadowingthe portion 362R.

FIG. 3 c schematically illustrates the semiconductor device 300 whenexposed to a reactive etch ambient 307, in which the portion 362R (FIG.3 b) may be efficiently removed, while a significant amount of theregion 362S may be preserved, thereby forming a charge storage region inthe gate opening 360O. As discussed above, the etch process 307 may beestablished on the basis of any appropriate chemistry that responds in asensitive manner to the incorporation of appropriate implantationspecies, as discussed above.

FIG. 3 d schematically illustrates the device 300 in a further advancedmanufacturing stage, in which a gate dielectric material 361, such as ahigh-k dielectric material, is formed in the gate opening 360O and onthe charge storage region 362S and an exposed portion of the dielectricmaterial 361A. To this end, any appropriate deposition technique may beapplied, as is also previously discussed. It should be appreciated that,if desired, material 361A may be removed and may be replaced by anyappropriate dielectric material, such as silicon dioxide and the like,having a desired thickness so as to act, in combination with thematerial 361, as an efficient gate dielectric material. In this case,the dielectric material 361A, formed below the region 362S may beappropriately adapted to the leakage behavior for transferring chargefrom and into the region 362S.

FIG. 3 e schematically illustrates the device 300 with an electrodematerial 363 formed in and above the gate opening 360O. The material 363may comprise any appropriate material or materials in order to providethe desired conductivity and to adjust the work function of the gateelectrode structure 360 in accordance with device requirements.Thereafter, any excess material may be removed, for instance by CMP andthe like, and the further processing may be continued by forming adielectric material above the resulting structure.

FIG. 3 f schematically illustrates the device 300 in which the contactstructure 320 may comprise one or more further dielectric materials 324,which may then be patterned so as to form contact openings andcorresponding contact elements 323 therein so as to connect to thetransistor 350, as is also previously discussed.

The programming and erasing of the transistor 350 during operation maybe accomplished on the basis of procedures as are also discussed abovewith reference to the conventional storage transistor 100.

FIG. 3 g schematically illustrates the device 300 according to furtherillustrative embodiments, in which the gate opening 366O is provided inthe gate electrode structure 360, wherein a charge storage material isstill to be formed in the opening 366O. Consequently, in this case, ahigh degree of compatibility may be achieved for patterning the gateelectrode structure 360 with respect to the gate electrode structures ofany other field effect transistors.

FIG. 3 h schematically illustrates the device 300 with the dielectricmaterial 362 formed in the gate opening 366O. The material 362 may beprovided in the form of a silicon nitride material, or any otherappropriate charge storage material. Furthermore, in some illustrativeembodiments, the material 362 may be provided together with a maskmaterial 369, such as silicon dioxide and the like, depending on theavailability of etch chemistries, which may efficiently respond to theincorporation of an implant species. The layers 362 and the optionallayer 369 may be provided on the basis of any appropriate depositiontechnique, such as CVD and the like.

FIG. 3 i schematically illustrates the device 300 during the ionimplantation process 306, in which the gate opening 366O may be used asan efficient mask for selectively modifying the etch behavior of thematerial 362 and/or of the material 369, if provided. That is, an etchrate increasing or decreasing species may be efficiently implantedduring the process 306.

FIG. 3 j schematically illustrates the device 300 during an etch process308, in which a portion of the material 362 may be removed, when theoptional layer 369 is not provided, thereby maintaining the material 362at least at the portion 3625, which may act as the charge storageregion, as previously explained. In other cases, the etch process 308may be used in order to pattern the mask material 369 so as to expose aportion 362R in the gate opening 366O. To this end, any appropriate etchrecipe may be applied, which may respond sensitively to the implantedspecies, as discussed above.

FIG. 3 k schematically illustrates the device 300 during a further etchprocess 309 in embodiments in which the material 369 may act as anefficient mask material. As indicated, the portion 362S may be preservedby the mask material 369, possibly in combination with material 362 atsidewalls of the gate electrode structure 360 at the drain site of thetransistor 350. During the etch process 309, the exposed portion of thedielectric layer 361A may act as an efficient etch stop material, whichmay be subsequently removed and may be replaced by any other appropriatedielectric material, if desired.

FIG. 3 l schematically illustrates the device 300 in an advancedmanufacturing stage, in which a dielectric material 361, such as ahigh-k dielectric material, is provided in the gate electrode structure360 together with the electrode material 363, which may have anyappropriate configuration, as is also discussed above. Thereafter thefurther processing may be continued by removing any excess material, asexplained above. Consequently, also in this case, the charge storageregion 362S may be provided in a later manufacturing stage in aself-aligned manner, i.e., without requiring a specific lithographyprocess.

FIG. 3 m schematically illustrates the semiconductor device 300according to further illustrative embodiments in which the chargestorage region 362S may be provided selectively within the gate opening366O in a self-aligned way, as is discussed above. More-over, the region362S may be separated from the drain region 352 and the channel region353 by the dielectric material 361A having a moderately high thicknessso as to substantially avoid charge carrier transition upon programmingand erasing the transistor 350. To this end, upon patterning the gateelectrode structure 360, an appropriate material, such as silicondioxide, silicon oxynitride, with a desired thickness may be used. Afterforming the material 362S, a further process 310 may be performed, forinstance an etch process, for removing a portion of the material 361A,so as to reduce the thickness thereof, as indicated by 361B, while, inother illustrative embodiments, the exposed portion of the material 361Amay be replaced by any other appropriate dielectric material having adesired composition and thickness. For example, in this case, theprocess 310 may additionally include an oxidation process, a surfacetreatment and the like. Thereafter, the further processing may becontinued by depositing a high-k dielectric material within the gateopening 366O, as is also previously discussed, thereby also providing ahigh-k dielectric material on the charge storage region 362S.Thereafter, any appropriate electrode material may be deposited, asdescribed above.

FIG. 3 n schematically illustrates the semiconductor device 300 in afurther advanced manufacturing stage. As illustrated, the gate electrodestructure 360 may comprise a high-k dielectric material 361 incombination with electrode material 363. Consequently, the region 362Smay be separated from the electrode 363 by the high-k dielectricmaterial 361 and may be separated from the drain region 352 and thechannel region 353 by the dielectric material 361A. Consequently, aspreviously discussed with reference to the device 200, the leakagecurrent behavior of the high-k dielectric material 361 may be takenadvantage of during the programming and erasing of the transistor 350 sothat excess charge, indicated by 363C, may be injected into the region362S or may be removed therefrom with the high-k dielectric material 361into the electrode 363 without requiring hot carrier injection via thechannel region 353 and the drain region 352. Consequently, as discussedbefore, also in this case, significantly reduced programming and erasingvoltages may be applied, thereby significantly simplifying the operationof the transistor 350 during any write cycles.

As a result, the present disclosure provides manufacturing techniques,semiconductor devices and programming and erasing procedures in whichsuperior performance and enhanced compatibility with complexmanufacturing strategies may be accomplished by providing a self-alignedcharge storage region embedded in the electrode material or in the formof a sidewall spacer. Moreover, in some illustrative embodiments, theleakage behavior of high-k dielectric materials may be efficientlyexploited in order to reduce the required programming and erasingvoltages. Consequently, non-volatile storage transistors may beimplemented with reduced overall dimensions, while at the same timeproviding a high degree of flexibility in combining the non-volatilestorage transistors with other sophisticated circuit elements andmanufacturing strategies. For example, full replacement gate approachesmay be applied, while, in other cases, conventional gate electrodestructures or high-k metal gate electrode structures provided in anearly manufacturing stage may be used in combination with thenon-volatile storage transistors.

The particular embodiments disclosed above are illustrative only, as theinvention may be modified and practiced in different but equivalentmanners apparent to those skilled in the art having the benefit of theteachings herein. For example, the process steps set forth above may beperformed in a different order. Furthermore, no limitations are intendedto the details of construction or design herein shown, other than asdescribed in the claims below. It is therefore evident that theparticular embodiments disclosed above may be altered or modified andall such variations are considered within the scope and spirit of theinvention. Accordingly, the protection sought herein is as set forth inthe claims below.

What is claimed:
 1. A method of storing information in a non-volatilestorage transistor, the method comprising: providing a charge storageregion adjacent to and electrically insulated from a drain region and agate electrode of said storage transistor, said charge storage regionbeing positioned to influence charge flow in a channel region of saidstorage transistor, wherein providing said charge storage regioncomprises providing said charge storage region within said gateelectrode and separated therefrom by a high-k dielectric material; andapplying a programming voltage between said gate electrode and saiddrain region of said storage transistor so as to initiate charge carriertransfer from said gate electrode to said charge storage region.
 2. Themethod of claim 1, wherein said programming voltage is approximately 5volts or less.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein providing saidcharge-storage region comprises forming a charge storage material andadjusting an etch behavior of at least one of said charge storagematerial and a dielectric mask material so as to locally vary in a gateopening used to form the gate electrode structure.
 4. The method ofclaim 3, further comprising performing a first etch process based onsaid at least one of said charge storage material and said mask materialhaving said locally varying etch behavior.
 5. The method of claim 4,wherein adjusting an etch behavior of at least one of said chargestorage material and said mask material comprises performing animplantation process using a tilt angle.
 6. The method of claim 4,wherein forming said charge storage region further comprises performinga second etch process and using said mask material as an etch mask afterperforming said first etch process.